Quote:
Originally Posted by sxrckr
Surely you must be right. The One is right about everything, all the time. The best and most unifying leader ever. The blame for everything lies elsewhere, always.
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Of course you jest. (sarcasm) When Obama leaves office he will be the proud owner of bearing the title as being the most polarizing president in history.
He ticks off all the boxes on polarization.
"Polarization is an effect that drives people so far apart on an issue it is as if they are at opposite poles. The people become emotionally attached to one side of an issue and become almost incapable of seeing any virtues in the opposing position or any faults in their own. It makes responsible thinking about the issue difficult or impossible. It may lead to personal animosity towards people who take the opposing viewpoint. Most of us have issues about which we are at least partially polarized.
Becoming polarized, step by step:
One side of an issue appeals to us.
We seek out facts to support this side.
We get most of our information from advocates of this side.
We feel superior for being on this side.
We like the people on our side better.
We trust the people on our side more.
We believe advocates for our side without analyzing them critically.
We distrust advocates for the other side.
We feel the people on the other side have undesirable traits that led them to their wrong opinions.
We jump on the slightest flaw in arguments made by the other side's proponents.
We find negative stereotypes about the other side very believable.
When our opponents make negative references to us, it is further evidence of their bad character.
Sources of information that treat us and our opponents almost equally must be biased, or they would recognize our superiority and the inferiority of our opponents.
Rather than enduring such unreliable sources or listening to our opponents' arguments directly, we learn of their misguided views and motives from our own trustworthy leaders.
When an opponent is found to have done something unethical, it is reprehensible, but typical of what we expect from the people we oppose.
When one of us is found to do something unethical it is not very important and possibly excusable if it aids our noble purposes.
We are good.
They are bad.
The superiority of our view is so obvious that our opponents could not possibly be sincere. They are deliberately promoting evil, self-serving policies.
They are our enemies, out to destroy us and our way of life!
People like
them should be ridiculed, stripped of power, silenced, punished, and perhaps even destroyed! "
http://www.truthpizza.org/polarize.htm
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...izing-preside/
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